Nintendo's had a limited presence in the Chinese market (image via Kotaku)

Will it be sustained?

After the Chinese government confirmed last year that it would be lifting its ban on game consoles, it became a reality this week. There are still the same hurdles that were highlighted previously, namely that hardware will need to be manufactured in a designated zone and all products will need approval from the country's Ministry of Culture.

Despite a Nintendo spokesman stating that the company is still unsure of its first moves in the potentially lucrative territory's new setup (according to Reuters), the news has reportedly sparked a substantial leap in Nintendo's share prices on the Tokyo Stock Exchange in trading on 8th January. Both CNBC and City Index are reporting an 11% increase in the share value at the close of the day, while a Tokyo-based trader said the following to Reuters.

Nintendo hasn't had a catalyst for a long time, so if it can revive (via) the Chinese consumer market then it would be positive.

As has been the case before, rise and fall in stock price isn't always a reliable indication of fortunes — and the depreciating Yen is also a factor in this jump — but it's certainly a positive for Nintendo that it's a reported two and a half year high. There are challenges, however, as this would be a brand new venture with a major degree of the unknown, stepping into a market and manufacturing system that has largely featured counterfeit and pirated gaming systems in previous years. Nintendo does have the benefit of some experience in China, having previously, through a joint venture, released the iQue home console — which plays ported Nintendo 64 games — and a number of iQue-branded portable systems with limited libraries that go right up to the 3DS.

As one of the most powerful economies in the world — some predict it will become the biggest in the not-too-distant future — China could be a lucrative market, though there is still a substantial demographic in the country earning very low wages. It'll be interesting to see what steps, if any, Nintendo and its rivals take into the territory.

Welsh ex-pat Tom is responsible for the day-to-day running of the site. He's the guy to thank for the generally brilliant nature of the content which massages your eyeballs on a daily basis. Also has an unhealthy obsession with all things Bowser.

Just waiting for someone to update that chalkboard of Wii U saviours to add in 'China'.

Honestly the smart way to release an official console in china would be to modify it and release it without a disc drive, because you're just gonna get then pirating discs if they release them as they are now. It has to be digital only.

Get to selling your Wii U in china theres over 1.3 billion people and half could get a Wii U and more then half could get 3DS. I know that iQUE is in China since N64 days with pique Wii and iQUE DS and 3DS but I don't see anyone using it

@XavandSo I didn't realise they made an I-Que wii? I know the dsi was the same but like the n64 edition only played a small handful of pre-approved games that had to be downloaded from a pre-approved supplier.

The Chinese government might prefer Nintendo's family friendly mission statement but as highlighted in the press, Chinese gamers have been monopolisized by PC gaming since 2000 - ie MMORPGs and FPs...neither genre is Nintendo's strong point. I fear Microsoft, with their links here will attempt to mop up.

Another factor is China's 'family planning policy' which has enforced the majority of affluent Chinese families to have no more than one child...a real spanner in the works when you consider 4 player local muliplayer for the whole family is Nintendo's angle of choice!

@Tender_Cutlet umm... yeah the local player thing ismt a problem woth the lack of kids. Especially simce most chinese keep theor circle of friends extremely close in terms of geographic distance. Itll be about brimging friemds over to play. As for Xbox. They are so clueless to the asian marketnits funny. They MAY attempt the 360 there but i doubt theyll see much presence at all. Look at Japan, very different yes but nonetheless a better indicator then nothing

Nintendo should be able to do very well over in China. Not only are their games very family friendly, not to mention some of the biggest IP around, but their consoles are also much more affordable than the others. That price difference will make a big difference to a lot of people over there.

I wonder how well something like Monster Hunter Ultimate would do over there since it has an MMO like style, and they do have Hunter Blade and I believe an official MH MMO in the works too.

I hope they get their act together in China better than they have in Europe. I still can't buy a white Wii U pro controller one year on and all the Wii U stand and cradles are black even though it's the white ones that are required since they weren't packaged with the basic console. Makes you wonder.

It will be a nightmare for them and it will certainly not benefit western gamers.